For hundreds of years, candy, flowers and gifts have been exchanged between loved ones each February 14th in the name of St. Valentine. The day has evolved over the years to include experiences as well as tokens of affection. So, in honor of Valentine’s Day, let’s take a look at some of the more experiential gifts loved ones will be sharing this year.
Build a Bucket List
A good way to bond with a loved one is by building a bucket list – things that you want to see and do before “kicking the bucket.” These bucket list items often include traveling (seeing the northern lights, booking a cruise or going on a safari rank high on many lists). To that end, publicly-traded travel services like American Express Company (Tii:AXP), Expedia Group, Inc. (Tii:EXPE) and TripAdvisor, Inc. (Tii:TRIP) offer vacation packages to accommodate just about any far-flung destination activity a couple could imagine.
Plan a Romantic Evening at Home
For some, there truly is no place like home. And with the advent of meal prep and food delivery services, consumers can bring the restaurant experience to their homes. The food delivery market has exploded in recent years, partly fueled by the pandemic. Valued at $131 billion in 2019, the industry’s total revenue is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 12% through 2020 to 2026, reaching nearly $289.6 billion, according to Maximize Market Research, a provider of B2B and B2C research. Meal kit providers such as Blue Apron (Tii:APRN) and food delivery services like those provided by Uber Technologies, Inc. (Tii:UBER) and DoorDash, Inc. (Tii:DASH) can ensure a romantic dinner from a favorite local restaurant in the comfort of the home.
Plan a Movie Marathon
Binge-watching has become a favored way to spend the evening – particularly for those living in cold-weather locations. With more at-home entertainment options available than ever before, there is a near-endless list of films and television/streaming shows from which to choose. Another beneficiary of the stay-at-home trends of the last two years, market research provider Statista expects revenue in the Subscription Video on Demand (SVoD) segment to exceed $82 billion in 2022. The major players have focused on creating original content – with reports that the industry will collectively spend $220 billion to create that content. While platforms managed by Netflix Inc. (Tii:NFLX), The Walt Disney Co. (Tii:DIS), Roku Inc. (Tii:ROKU), fuboTV Inc. (Tii:FUBO) and others battle it out, consumers have a wide variety of at-home entertainment options from which to choose.
Book a Hotel Room
One doesn’t have to travel to a destination city to enjoy a romantic evening in a hotel – in fact, it’s not uncommon for a couple to book a room nearby for some alone time. The hotel industry experienced the most devastating year on record in 2020 but began to re-emerge in 2021, fueled by national vaccine distribution, according to the American Hotel & Lodging Association (ALHA). The organization expects the hotel industry to continue moving toward recovery in 2022. This is welcomed news for the major players. If a romantic getaway is what’s wanted, consider one of Marriott International Inc.’s (Tii:MAR) 8,000 properties, Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc.’s (Tii:HLT) more than 6,700 properties, or InterContinental Hotels Group PLC’s (Tii:IHG) nearly 6,000 hotels for your evening.
Don’t Forget the Flowers
While it’s good to focus on the experiential, flowers and sweets, remain a tried-and-true way to show your affection. Valentine’s Day remains the biggest revenue-generator of the year for the floral industry, followed by Easter, Mother’s Day and Christmas. This year, 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. (Tii:FLWS) teamed up with astrology app Sanctuary to curate an exclusive Valentine’s Day floral collection bouquets matched to each astrological sign. If the loved one isn’t a zodiac enthusiast, the e-commerce company offers not only flowers but more than a dozen brands of cookies, confections and other sweets.
There is no one way to create the perfect date night, just as there is no shortage of publicly-traded brands ready to help create the perfect memories. These and other brands are at the ready to provide the products and services to make lasting memories.